NoIRLab
The aftermath of the most powerful explosion ever recorded, GRB221009A, was observed in the early morning hours of today, 14 October. This record-breaking event, which was first detected by X-ray and gamma-ray telescopes, occurred 2.4 billion light-years from Earth and is thought to have been caused by a supernova explosion.
Astronomers from around the world raced to study the aftermath of a titanic cosmic explosion, which may be the most-energetic gamma-ray burst ever seen. The bright, glowing remains of the explosion, which likely heralded a supernova giving birth to a black hole, were targeted by two independent teams using the International Gemini Observatory operated by the National Science Foundation.
The constellation Sagitta is in the direction of the GRB. It was first detected by space telescopes on the morning of October 9th.
Two teams of astronomer worked with staff at the Gemini South to get the earliest possible observations of the afterglow of the explosion.
In the early-morning hours of Friday, 14 October, two Rapid Target of Opportunity scans were conducted by two teams of observers led by graduate students Brendan O'Connor (University of Maryland/George Washington University) and Jillian Rastinejad Minutes apart, the observations took place. The FLAMINGOS-2 instrument was used to observe. The other observation was done using a multi- object analyzer.
The teams are able to use both datasets for their analyses.
According to O'Connor, the longest GRB ever recorded is the best and its afterglow is smashing all records. We think this is a once-in-a-century opportunity to address some of the most fundamental questions regarding these explosions, from the formation of black holes to tests of dark matter models.
Thanks to the quick reaction of observers and staff, this image was quickly produced.
The Chief Scientist of the observatory said that the observatory's infrastructure and staff are hallmarks of it.
The archive of the NASA Gamma-ray Coordinates Network is filled with reports from all over the world. Astronomers think it represents the collapse of a star many times the mass of our Sun, which in turn creates an extremely powerful supernova and a black hole 2.4 billion light-years away.
When you look at the thousands of bursts that have been detected since the 1990s, this one stands apart. Gemini's diverse instrument suite will allow us to observe GRB221009A's optical counterparts to a much later time than most ground-based telescopes can. We will be able to understand what made this burst so bright and energetic.
Black holes accelerate particles to the speed of light. The jets emit X-rays and gamma rays as they travel into space. The jets are seen as bright flashes of X-rays and gamma rays if they point in the general direction of Earth.
The case is still evolving and there is a chance that this bright burst won't appear for a long time. There are other reports of the Earth's ionosphere being disrupted by the GRB221009A event. The Chinese Large High Altitude Air Shower Observatory has a very high-energy 18 TeV (tera-electron-volt) photon and scientists are wondering how they could survive for 2.4 billion years.
Because of its close proximity to Earth, this event provides a unique opportunity to better understand the origin of elements heavier than iron and whether they all come from collapsing stars.
O'Connor said the observations would allow them to seek out the signatures of heavy elements formed and ejected in the star collapse.
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